Latest news with #NickStarmer
The Independent
05-07-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Starmer thanks nurse who helped his brother to mark NHS anniversary
Sir Keir Starmer has paid tribute to an NHS advanced nurse practitioner who cared for his brother, Nick, in the final weeks before his death. Nick died from cancer on Boxing Day 2024, aged 60. In a video marking the NHS's 77th anniversary, the Prime Minister said Ben Huntley ensured his brother "felt cared for and respected". In the clip, Sir Keir is shown speaking to Mr Huntley in Downing Street, while other members of the public also meet with NHS staff who helped them. The Prime Minister said: 'My mum worked in the NHS and then she was very, very ill, for most of her life. And the NHS became our absolute lifeline. 'My sister worked for the NHS, my wife works for the NHS, and it was the NHS that looked after my brother who we lost last Boxing Day to cancer. 'Ben, you looked after him. I think from the moment he was in all the way through, and you made sure that he felt cared for and respected.' The PM later added: 'That meant a huge amount to me and my family and, on all of our behalves, I say through you a very special thank you to the NHS.' Earlier this week, Sir Keir told the BBC's Political Thinking that he 'made it my business to be there in the hospital' when his brother was told about his diagnosis 'so that I could begin to help look after him'. 'It's really hard to lose your brother to cancer, he was a very vulnerable man,' the Prime Minister said. He shared details of 'going up in the porter's lift into the back of the intensive care unit' and wanting to protect his brother's privacy. He told the same interview that US President Donald Trump asked about his brother in a call a 'few days' after he died.
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Starmer thanks nurse who helped his brother to mark NHS anniversary
Sir Keir Starmer has paid tribute to an NHS advanced nurse practitioner who cared for his brother, Nick, in the final weeks before his death. Nick died from cancer on Boxing Day 2024, aged 60. In a video marking the NHS's 77th anniversary, the Prime Minister said Ben Huntley ensured his brother "felt cared for and respected". In the clip, Sir Keir is shown speaking to Mr Huntley in Downing Street, while other members of the public also meet with NHS staff who helped them. The Prime Minister said: 'My mum worked in the NHS and then she was very, very ill, for most of her life. And the NHS became our absolute lifeline. The NHS has always been there for my family. Today, on its 77th anniversary, the entire country says thank you. — Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) July 5, 2025 'My sister worked for the NHS, my wife works for the NHS, and it was the NHS that looked after my brother who we lost last Boxing Day to cancer. 'Ben, you looked after him. I think from the moment he was in all the way through, and you made sure that he felt cared for and respected.' The PM later added: 'That meant a huge amount to me and my family and, on all of our behalves, I say through you a very special thank you to the NHS.' Earlier this week, Sir Keir told the BBC's Political Thinking that he 'made it my business to be there in the hospital' when his brother was told about his diagnosis 'so that I could begin to help look after him'. 'It's really hard to lose your brother to cancer, he was a very vulnerable man,' the Prime Minister said. He shared details of 'going up in the porter's lift into the back of the intensive care unit' and wanting to protect his brother's privacy. He told the same interview that US President Donald Trump asked about his brother in a call a 'few days' after he died.
Daily Mail
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Keir Starmer reveals Donald Trump comforted him after his brother's death saying they both ‘really care about family'
Sir Keir Starmer has revealed Donald Trump comforted him after the death of his brother at Christmas. In an interview with the BBC to mark a year in office the Prime Minister said he had a 'good personal relationship' with Mr Trump, and told how they spoke days after Nick died on Boxing Day. Sir Keir said he secretly visited his 60-year-old brother before and after the general election during his cancer treatment. He told the BBC Radio 4 podcast Political Thinking With Nick Robinson it was 'in the national interest' for the two men to connect. He said: 'We are different people and we've got different political backgrounds and leanings, but we do have a good relationship and that comes from a numbers of places. 'I think I do understand what anchors the president, what he really cares about. 'For both of us, we really care about family and there's a point of connection there.' He added: 'It's really hard to lose your brother to cancer. I wanted fiercely to protect him. 'And that's why both before the election and after the election, I went secretly to see him at home, secretly to see him in hospital. 'He was in intensive care for a long time.' Sir Keir was by his younger brother's side when doctors told his sibling he was terminally ill. He paid emotional tribute to his sibling, who has described as a 'wonderful man' who had a 'really tough life' with learning disabilities.. Nick fought off pancreatic cancer in 2022 but the disease later returned, spreading to his lungs. Sir Keir accompanied his younger sibling to the hospital when medics broke the devastating news, the PM's biographer, Tom Baldwin, revealed late last year. 'Nick is mostly deaf, unable to work and is going to die - that's it,' the PM disclosed to Mr Baldwin. 'I didn't want him to be on his own when he got this news,' he added, as he questioned whether Nick had 'really got his head around' the terminal diagnosis. Addressing recent political turmoil, Sir Keir said he will always 'carry the can' as leader after coming under fire over a climbdown on welfare reforms and that he would 'always take responsibility' when asked questions. 'When things go well… the leader gets the plaudits, but when things don't go well, it is really important that the leader carries the can – and that's what I will always do.' Sir Keir also backed Rachel Reeves and said she would be Chancellor 'for a very long time to come', after the politician was visibly tearful in the House of Commons on Wednesday following a U-turn to welfare reform plans that put an almost £5 billion black hole in her plans. Ms Reeves said it was a 'personal matter' which had upset her ahead of Prime Minister's Questions. The Government had seen off the threat of a major Commons defeat over the legislation on Tuesday after shelving plans to restrict eligibility for the personal independence payment, the main disability benefit in England. Sir Keir said he cannot 'pretend… that wasn't a tough day', and stressed the welfare system 'isn't working for the people that matter to me'. 'In the world that isn't politics, it is commonplace for people to look again at a situation and judge it by the circumstances as they now are and make a decision accordingly,' he said of the changes. 'And that is common sense, it's pragmatic, and it's a reflection of who I am. 'It was important that we took our party with us, that we got it right.
The Independent
04-07-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Starmer reveals what he and Trump bonded over
Sir Keir Starmer said he has built a good personal relationship with Donald Trump, based on shared family values, which he believes aided the US trade deal. Sir Keir revealed that Trump offered condolences following the death of his younger brother, Nick Starmer, on Boxing Day last year, and that their initial conversation was after Trump was shot at a rally before he became president. The prime minister faced a humiliating climbdown on welfare reform, abandoning plans to restrict eligibility for personal independence payments (PIP) after admitting the system is not working. Despite the welfare reform bill passing its second reading, Sir Keir suffered the largest rebellion of his premiership, with 49 Labour MPs voting against the legislation. Sir Keir affirmed that he will always carry the can and take responsibility as leader when things do not go well, acknowledging the challenges faced.
